Actor Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson, walked the red carpet last night at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum’s official showing of Hanks’ “Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D.” The minute the celeb couple hit the red carpet, Hanks muttered loud enough for photographers to hear: “Another red carpet. Here we go. Turn. Turn. Turn. Smile. OK, now the other way. Turn. Turn. Turn. Smile,” suggesting Hanks’ tip to red-carpet wannabes: Life in front of the camera lens may not be all that it is cracked up to be.
Buzz, light years from ‘Edwin’
Hanks was preceded by several of the original Apollo astronauts, including Apollo XI’s “one giant leap for mankind’s” Buzz Aldrin. Aldrin and Hanks sit on the board of the National Space Society. A cameraman, given special permission by his director to conduct an on-camera interview with Edwin Buzz Aldrin, shared that his parents named him after the senior astronaut. Aldrin, looking carefully at cameraman Edwin, said: “I officially changed my name to ‘Buzz’ years back. Officially, Edwin Aldrin is no longer. It’s Dr. Buzz to you.”
Just say ‘yes,’ already
Prospective baseball team owners are getting impatient and would like to see the process completed. Fred Malek says he’d put the odds at 60-40 that his group will win the Nationals. “We just keep saying yes, yes, yes, [to the league],” he told me, “whatever they want.” Some from other groups have wanted to join Malek’s team, but “we haven’t taken anyone in,” he said.
Remember the Giant family
Barry Scher, 62, who’s been with Giant Food for 39 years – starting as a bagger and working his way up to vice president for public affairs – is throwing a private reunion on Nov. 9 for 900 former Giant associates and their spouses, from the store managers up. The bash will be held at Martin’s Crosswinds in Greenbelt. Attendees will include former CEO Pete Manas, former Executive Vice President Alvin Dolvin and Vice President Alvin Miller. No one from the founding local Cohen or Lehman families will be in attendance. “There’s a lot of good spirit in the people. They really miss each other,” Scher said.
Sightings
Former Rep. Tom Evans, R-Del., daughter Page Evans Schwartz, former Texans Sally and Buck Chapoton, artist Deedy Ogden and personal trainer to the power brokers Margo Carper, at Mary Page Evans‘ art opening at Addison/Ripley Gallery in Georgetown the other evening. … Former Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga., with fiancee Nancy Ross at “The Mystique of Sandalwood” opening reception at the National Museum for Women in the Arts on Monday evening. The Savannah College of Art and Design, the nation’s largest art school, is sponsoring the exhibition of works on loan from China’s wealthiest woman, Madame Chan Laiwa, who is also curator of the China Red Sandalwood Museum in Beijing. Sen. Cleland was talking about Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., John Kerry, D-Mass., and George Allen, R-Va., as his picks for the national ticket next time around . … The man to watch, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., at the Palm downtown the same evening.